Riveting entry thanks mainly to fine acting from the two youngsters, Driscoll and Votrian. Sad-faced Votrian was popular during this period, usually as a boy with problems. Here his casting as an 8-year old with a speech garbling cleft-palate is tailor made, and he brings it off movingly. It's also a good look at Bobby Driscoll who plays the compassionate brother. Too bad Driscoll's brief life was so trouble-filled (IMDB). Familiar faces include Claude Akins and Jeff York as doctors, respectively. And for movie buffs, that's Lorna Thayer as the teacher; her later role as a waitress in 5 Easy Pieces (1970) famously refuses letting Jack Nicholson have a sandwich his way. All in all, it's a solid entry thanks to two very talented youngsters.
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